The Tumescent Technique

Practicing the Tumescent Liposuction Technique in Palm Desert

One of the most significant improvements in liposuction has been the introduction of the Tumescent Technique, developed by Dr. Jeffrey A. Klein, M.D. in 1985.

The Tumescent Technique permits liposuction solely by local anesthesia instead of general anesthesia. This technique is now considered the safest form of liposuction for removing very large amounts of fat because there is virtually no blood loss. Not only has the Tumescent Technique proven to be safer than the standard technique using general anesthesia but it also has proven to be less painful, has minimized postoperative recovery time, and has produced optimal cosmetic results.

Liposuction Totally by Local Anesthesia

The word tumescent means ‘swollen and firm.’ The Tumescent Technique uses large volumes of a dilute solution of lidocaine, a local anesthetic, in combination with the vasoconstrictive drug epinephrine, which temporarily shrinks capillaries.

Local anesthesia used in the Tumescent Technique for liposuction is so effective that patients no longer need intravenous sedatives, narcotic analgesics, or general anesthesia. Over the years, numerous patients who previously had liposuction with general anesthesia have had second treatments with the Tumescent Technique. Virtually every one of these patients has found the Tumescent Technique to be less painful, to provide better results and to result in more rapid healing and recovery.

Virtually No Blood Loss

As a result of the widespread capillary constriction caused by the epinephrine in the anesthetic solution, there is minimal bleeding during and after surgery. This is a major improvement in the liposuction technique compared to older methods that simply use general anesthesia and do lead to some blood loss and longer recovery times.

Dr. Klein has shown in one study that in large volume liposuction of 112 patients, each of whom had between 1,500 ml to 3,400 ml (1.5 quarts to nearly 1 gallon) of fat removed using the Tumescent Technique, none required a blood transfusion. The average patient lost approximately three teaspoons, (15 ml), of blood. The Tumescent Technique is so effective at minimizing blood loss that the majority of patients with large volume liposuction lose less blood during the surgery than they do at the time of their routine pre-operative laboratory studies.

Risks of General Anesthesia

The drugs that are used to produce general anesthesia are relatively dangerous compared to those used for local anesthesia. It is estimated that fatal complications associated with general anesthesia occur somewhere between 1 in every 2,500 patients to 1 in every 10,000 patients. The severe complications associated with general anesthesia are eliminated, just by not using these medications. It is well recognized that local anesthesia is considerably safer than general anesthesia.

General anesthesia also inhibits a patient on the day of surgery making for a longer recovery time, causing the patient to have to recover from not only the procedure but also the anesthesia. The Tumescent Technique has no down time due to the anesthesia part of your procedure.

Is an Anesthesiologist Necessary?

Anesthesiologists are specially trained to use dangerous anesthetic drugs. Even with this expert training, dangers of general anesthesia persist. The safest approach is simply to avoid using these drugs altogether. An anesthesiologist is not necessary when dangerous general anesthetic drugs are not used and local anesthesia is the only anesthetic. Dr. Warren administers lidocaine in a solution, which is the local anesthetic used with the Tumescent Technique. An anesthesiologist and an anesthesiologist’s associated fees are not necessary.